Air deflecting device



. Aug. 24, 1937. H. ANDERSON 2,090,908

AIR DEFLECTINGDEVICE Filed Nov. 8,. 1955 '2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Miazhg An derson Aug. 24, 1937. H. ANDERSON AIR DEFLECTING DEVICE Filed Nov. 8, 1955 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 QM k x? Patented Aug. '24, 1937 PATENT OFFICE AIR DEFLECTING DEVICE Hilding Anderson, New Britain, Conn, assignor to Tuttle & Bailey, Inc., New Britain, Conn., a

corporation of Connecticut Application November 8, 1935, Serial No. 48,829

8 Claims.

This invention relates to air deflecting devices for use in connection with heating, ventilating, or air-conditioning systems. As illustrative of one of the applicants to which my improved device may be applied, reference may be had 1:

registers or grilles.

The object of the invention is to provide an improved device of the character described by means of which-the flow of air may be adjustably controlled.

A more particular object of the invention is to provide an improved register wherein the diffusion and deflection of. the air passing therethrough may be very easily and nicely controlled in order to obtain the desired distribution of the incoming air throughout the room without creat-' ing objectionable drafts.

More particularly, an aim of the invention is to provide an improved air deflecting device, the vanes or blades of which may be adjusted in order to meet various requirements and conditions which may be presented in any particular installation.

A further aim of the invention is to provide an improved device of this sort which comprises relatively few parts, which is particularly characterized by its extreme simplicity in construction, which is relatively cheap to manufacture, which may be easily adjusted to meet requirements, and which is reliable and efiicient in operation.

Other objects will be in part obvious and in part pointed out more in detail hereinafter.

The invention accordingly consists in the features of construction, combination of elements and arrangement of parts which will be exemplifled ln the construction hereinafter set forth and the scope of the application of which will be indicated in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawings, wherein is shown, for illustrative purposes, one embodiment which the present invention may take:

Figure 1 is a front view of the register;

Fig. 2 is a horizontal cross sectional view therethrough taken substantially on line 2-2 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a vertical cross sectional view taken substantially on line 3.3 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a detailed sectional view showing the deflection adjusting screw, this view being takention, thelower ends of the centermost vanes and the manner in which the adjacent ends of the adjusting strips are pivoted; and

Fig. 7 is a detail view in perspective showing portions of the adjusting strip, one of the vanes, and one of the supporting members for the vanes.

In these drawings I have shown the improvements of the present invention incorporated in a register or'grille, but it is to be understood that such disclosure is by way of illustration as the invention has other applications. A is a frame or casing of any suitable construction or shape. It may be made of sheet metal and be of generally rectangular form, as is usual. Secured to the top and bottom walls l0 and II of the frame are blade supporting members B which are preferably in the form of sheet metal strips bent into channel shape so as to provide a base portion l2, a connecting-web l3, and a flange, or web l4 parallel to but spaced from the base portion. The base portions of the strips are secured in suitable manner, as by means of welding, against the top and bottom walls of the frame. The blades, vanes, or bars are designated by the letter C. Each bar is made from strip or sheet metal and has at its opposite ends, and adjacent its front edge, projections '15 forming pintles adapted to respectively engage in hearing openings 16 in the flanges M of the supporting strips B. The bearing openings IS in each strip are preferably equally spaced apart and the 30 openings in one strip are, of course, aligned with those in the other strip. The supporting members B are made of spring or resilient metal, and the flanges thereof are so spaced apart with respect to the length of the bars that these flanges press against the ends of the bars rearwardly of the pintles IS with sufiicient pressure to prevent rattling or shaking of the bars. This pressure, however, is not sufliciently great as to interfere with the ready'adjustment of the bars. Each bar also has on its lower end, and adjacent its rear edge, a projection or lug I! for the purpose to be hereinafter described more in detail.

By preference, but not necessarily, the central bars, for example the three center bars, designated by the character C are fixed against adjustment and in a plane at right angles to the plane of the front face of the frame. To this end, there may be secured, as by welding, to the central portion of the bottom supporting member B a clip orbracket 20 having its ends ofiset. upwardly as illustrated in Fig. 6. This bracket has a centrally disposed apertured boss 2|. and the offset arms are apertured so as to accommodate the projections H on the respective bars C.

In the present illustrative disclosure, there is shown a group of adjustable bars or vanes to 5 each side of the center stationary members C. The bars or blades of each group are adjusted in like manner through the instrumentality of an adjusting strip D associated therewith. In the present instance, these ,strips are located above the base l2 of the bottom supporting member B and their adjacent ends are pivoted on the projections ll of the two stationary bars C which are disposed on' opposite sides of the centermost bar. Each strip, which comprises a flat length of metal, is provided with a-plurality of parallel slots which in the present illustrative embodiment are shown as inclined with respect to the length of the strip. The slots of the two strips are inclined in opposite directions. The lugs ll of the adjustable bars engage in these slots which form guideways. For the purpose of angularly adjusting the strips D, each is provided with a respective adjusting screw 26. In the present instance, each screw is rotatably supported against axial movement by a respective two-piece bracket 21 welded or otherwise secured to the side wall of the frame adjacent the lower end thereof. Each screw has a fixed collar 28 engaging between the two pieces of the bracket so that the screw cannot move axially. The forward end of each screw is provided with a kerf 28 for accommodating the blade of a screw driver or other tool when it is desired to turn the screw. Each strip D is provided, adjacent its outer end, with a rearwardly extending ear or lug 30 having a threaded opening into which the screw is threaded.

With the arrangement described, when .a sore 26 is turned, the associated adjusting strip D is angularly adjusted about the pivot l1 and, due to the engagement of the lugs H of the adjustable bars in the slots 25, these bars are angularly adjusted in progressively varying degrees; that is to say, the bars are differentially angularly adjusted. More particularly, and as is shown at the right hand side of Fig. 2, when an adjusting strip is parallel to the face of the register, the bars associated with thatstrip are disposed generally at right angles to the face of the register. When the outer end of the strip is advanced forwardly, the bars associated with that strip are brought in unison to progressively lesser angles with respect to the face of the register as the bars progress from the center of the register towards the end thereof. By properly adjusting the adjusting strips, the air passing through the register may be directed into the room as desired and as is necessary to meet the conditions presented. In case the register is positioned in a wall adjacent the corner of the room, it may be desirable to adjust the groups of vanes as shown in Fig, 2, it being assumed that the adjacent end wall of the room is at the right hand of that figure. In such instance, the air passing through the right hand side of the register would be directed forwardly and generally parallel to the end wall of the room, and the other group of vanes will direct the air somewhat laterally so as to obtain the proper distribution. In the event the register is placed more centrally of the room, the group of vanes may be adjusted so that one group will direct the air laterally in one direction and the other group laterally in the opposite direction so as to get an even distribution. In the latter instance, the air, as it flows into the room, would have a fan-like spread more or less graded down towards its ends. In any instance, however, the air, as it passes through the register, is not broken up into separate streams but, on the other hand, the air will issue more or less in a continuous unbroken flow. My improved arrangement pro-' vides for considerable flexibility in the distribution and deflection of the air. It is important to note that the desired adjustability of the bars through a considerable range is obtained by a very'simple, efl'ective structure which may be manufactured at a relatively low cost. 'I'headjusting means comprises but a relatively few parts, each of which may be manufactured. at a low cost. The adjusting bars are particularly capable of being manufactured at a low cost, it being merely necessary to punch out slots in a metal strip.

In order to reinforce the bars and hold their central portions in proper spaced relation, a re inforcing and spacing bridge is provided along the central horizontal portion of the register.

This bridge may comprise a front fiat strip 3| and a companion strip 32, the latter being provided with spaced bends 33 so as to form, between itself and the strip 3|, bearing openings. Each bar, at its-central portion, is provided witha slot 34 and a bearing portion 35. The strip 32 extends through these slots, and the bearing portions 35 are received by said bearing openings.

Also, if desired, the register may be provided with a valve 40 for controlling the amount of air forced through the register. In the present illustrative disclosure, there is shown a valve arrangement similar to that illustrated and described in the copending application of Stanley Hart and Julius Carlson, Serial No. 712,697 filed February 24, 1934 now patent No. 2,017,407. The valve 40 is in the form of a sheet metal plate hinged, as at 4|, to the upper wall of the frame. Secured to the upper wall of the frame is an abutment member 42 in the forward wall of which is journalled a screw threaded shaft 43 on which is a square nut 44. The nut is provided along its vertical sides with grooves 45 which accommodate lugs 46 on the bifurcated portion 41. of a connecting member 48 which is secured to the valve. It is understood that the screw threaded shaft 43 is held against axial movement, and when it is turned, the nut will travel therealong, thereby resulting in adjustment of the valve 40.

As many changes could be made in the above construction and many apparently widely different embodiments of this invention could be' made without departing from the scope thereof, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

It is also to be understood that the language used in the following claims is intended to cover all of the generic and specific features of the invention herein described and all statements of the scope of the invention which, as a matter of language, might be said to fall therebetween.

I claim as my invention:

1. In a device of the character described, a frame, a plurality of blades supported by said frame in side by side relation and for angular adjustment, and a pivotally supported adjustable member common to and associated with said blades and arranged, when angularly adjusted about its pivot, to vary the angular positions of said blades in progressively varying amounts.

3'. In a device of the character described, a

frame, a plurality of blades pivoted in said frame in side by side relation, an elongated adjusting strip pivotally mounted in the frame and having a plurality of spaced slots, said blades having lugs respectively engaging in said slots, and means for adjusting said adjusting member..

4. In a device of the character described, a frame, a plurality of angularly adjustable blades pivotally supported in said frame in generally side by side relation, an adjusting strip within the frame and extending generally in the direction in which said blades are spaced apart, means in the frame pivotally supporting the strip, said strip having a plurality of spaced apart parallel slots, said blades having lugs respectively engaging in said slots, and means for angularly adjusting said strip.

5. In a device of the character described, a frame, a plurality of blades pivoted at their for-. ward edges in said frame and in side by side relation, an adjusting strip extending generally in the direction in which said blades are spaced apart, means in the frame pivotally supporting one end of the strip, said strip having a plurality of'inclined slots, lugs projecting from the ends of said-blades rearwardly of their forward edges and respectively engaging in said slots, and a screw for angularly adjusting sud strip.

6. In a device of the character described, a frame, a pair of resilient blade supporting members carried by said frame and having opposed apertured flanges, a plurality of blades positioned betweensaid flanges and having pintles at their opposite ends engaging in the apertures thereof,

said flanges bearing against the ends of blades,

and means including a pivotally supported strip within the frame for angularly and simultaneously adjusting said blades about-said pintles.

7. In a device of the character described, a frame, a pair of resilient blade supporting men.- bers having spaced parallel flanges provided with bearing openings, a plurality of blades between said flanges and having pintles engaging in said bearing openings, said flanges frictionally, engaging the endsof said blades, an adjusting strip in said frame and having spaced parallel slots,

means pivotally supporting said strip in the frame, lugs extending from said blades and respectively engaging in said slots, and a screw for angularly adjusting said strip.

8. In a device of the character described, a frame, two groups of adjustable blades positioned side by side, said blades being pivotally mounted in said frame, a pair of adjusting members respectively associated with said groups of blades, means pivotally securing one end of each of said adjusting members to the'frame, each of said other member in the opposite direction, said blades having lugs respectively engaging in said slots, and means for adjusting each of said adjusting members.

I-IILDING ANDERSON. 

